Give me a K

In my Bible alphabet blog series K stands for Kingdom.

And I am not talking about the Kingdom of the Netherlands (where I live), but about the Kingdom of God! Jesus spoke about it much and often.

After His resurrection from the dead, this message became more urgent. In Acts 1: 3 it is written about Jesus that He appeared to them [the apostles] over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. Forty days? There is indeed much to say...

In the Bible the terms the Kingdom of Heaven and the Kingdom of God are being used interchangeably and sometimes the Bible simply refers to it as the Kingdom. Let's see what the Kingdom is not:

• It is not a natural kingdom, not a place or country. It is a spiritual dimension where God's will reigns. Jesus said, My kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36) and your kingdom come, your will be done (Matthew 6:10).
• It is not a matter of our daily natural needs.  For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17)
• It is not a theory or theology. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power (1 Corinthians 4:20).

There is this religious thought that the Kingdom is a future destination. But Jesus tells us that we must seek the kingdom first, above all else (Matthew 6:33). Why would He let us begin a search for something that cannot be found here on earth? This is a question that the scribes and theologians also struggled with. Jesus told them, The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ (Luke 17:20). So, where is it?

Jesus continues ... because the kingdom of God is in your midst. (Luke 17:21). Well, they were speechless, as are many of us today. The Kingdom of God [His will on earth as in heaven] here with us? Some translations say the Kingdom is near you or within you ... However we look at it, the kingdom is never far away. Please note: there is no kingdom without the King! The Kingdom of God is within you only if Jesus lives there.

Righteousness, peace and joy with power is within us when we are alone but also among us when we are together as believers. We can experience the kingdom from within, but it also surrounds us as we go into the world. Jesus gave us the kingdom inside so that we can go outside to spread it in a broken, tired and troubled world.

[see also my Kingdom basics blog series]